100 Anos de Solidad I

Well I never made this connection before, but I guess I can see the parallel between José Arcadio Buendía and Don Quijote, in the sense that they both kind of live in their own world. José Arcadio Buendía is obsessed with the new-found gadgets of the gypsies, which is interesting in itself since most times gypsies were viewed as social outcasts. Interestingly enough he has a little bit of a violent side as well (as we see when he kills Prudencio and essentially rapes his wife).Although he seems to be a “man of few words” his actions speak pretty loudly.

I would say that one of the biggest symbols in this novel (ok so they're kind of like symbols) are the gypsies. While each individual has their own significance in the novel the group as a whole represents this idea of the unknown or the magical. José Arcadio Buendía sees their inventions as wondrous and becomes intrigued by them and eventually obsesses over them. They kind of become a symbol for his madness, and maybe to some extent the madness of others.